By Hope Sloop

If you search Evan Ross Katz‘s name on Getty Images, you’ll find photo after photo of him alongside everyone from Sarah Michelle Gellar and Ryan Murphy to Ariana Grande and Jenna Lyons. If you look quickly at his Instagram page, you’ll see that his nearly half a million followers include names like Kathryn Hahn and Sandra Bullock — the latter of whom joined the app only weeks ago and follows just 81 accounts.

It’s clear to anyone who has ever heard of Evan Ross Katz — not to be confused with actor/musician Evan Ross, film producer Ross Katz, or TV writer Evan Katz — that he is someone who Hollywood knows, loves, and wants to have in their corner. Despite that notoriety (and the A-List roster of names who now call him “friend”) Katz says he is still surprised whenever a new opportunity presents itself, especially one as major as his new podcast deal with Netflix. Through the partnership, his hit series, Shut Up Evan, is brought to the streamer with a video format and two new episodes weekly; on Tuesdays, Katz will release episodes of “Deep in the DMs With…” while Fridays see him welcoming guests for “The Group Chat,” a rotating panel to discuss everything unfolding in the world of pop culture.

It’s something he’s been wanting to do for a while.

“I’m just very aware of the fact that people who make art are also fans of art,” Katz told DECIDER in a sitdown over Zoom to chat about the launch. “So I thought it could be a good opportunity to kind of flip the lens on celebrities having to talk about their project and give them an opportunity to wax poetic about the things that they’re watching and loving and thinking about.”

While the Tuesday version of the podcast — which is part of a new Netflix push to incorporate audio series on the platform — will be Katz’s “bread and butter” interviews with actors, musicians, creatives, and anyone else with a big name and thoughts to share, it’s “The Group Chat” that Katz says he’s most excited to dive into. For the commentator who points to shows like The View and Chelsea Lately as inspirations, it’s the kind of show that both honors its ancestors while also providing the audience with a new feel and topical discussions for the modern era.

“Talking about pop culture is a big part of my group chats, it’s a big part of the things I post about on my Instagram. I wanted to find a way to bring some topicality into the podcast itself,” he shared, referencing how many of his own interviews are tied to new TV show releases or new movies, where an actor often stops by to promote a project rather than just chat about things going on in the world.

Through his “Chaos Dinners,” which Katz defines as a night where he brings together notable people from different walks of life to chat about anything under the sun — one of his last dinners had Trixie Mattel seated next to Zachary Quinto and Kathy Hilton on Katz’s flank, not far off from Ciara Miller and Jack Falahee — the podcaster and journalist has managed to pick up on a hunger to sit down and talk about pop culture and other hot button issues in the zeigeist with people who have different perspectives on each topic.

“There are so many things coming out every single day, and so often things are released all at once these days — specifically with television — that it can be really easy to feel ostracized from the conversation because you might start a show even just a few days late and already feel like the conversation has passed you by. Or, because we consume things at different rates, you might be on episode three of something, and you go to talk to your friend about it and they’re like, ‘Talk to me once you’ve reached episode eight,’ and then by the time you get to eight, they’re obsessed with something new altogether,” Katz explained.

He added, “So I just felt like trying to find, like, cycles with which to get in on conversations was becoming really challenging for me. And so I wanted to use this show as an opportunity to say, ‘Hey, let’s all take a beat to process this thing.'”

A beat to process, laugh, and find a sense of community in an increasingly cacophonous world. And while it’s Katz’s friends who will physically join him at the table each week — the first of whom are Crazy Ex-Girlfriend creator Rachel Bloom, Survival of the Thickest star Michelle Buteau, and Broadway’s Constantine Rousouli — he’s hoping the pod becomes a space where anyone can find comfort in discussing everything from the Met Gala to which restaurant has the best free bread (it’s The Cheesecake Factory, by the way).

So while you may not ever find yourself having a heart-to-heart with Buffy Summers herself or casually yapping it up about a cult classic show with the newest star of The White Lotus, Katz is going to do everything in his power to make you feel like you have. Get in, losers, we’re dissecting pop culture.

How To Watch Shut Up Evan

Netflix offers three subscription plans to fit your streaming needs. The plans start at $7.99/month for standard with ads and go up to $24.99/month for unlimited ad-free streaming in up to 4K UHD quality.

Shut Up, Evan drops its first “The Group Chat” episode today, May 1. New episodes premiere Tuesdays and Fridays on Netflix.